Lighten Up
by bigtreydawg
Summary: After the events of X-Treme X-Men #20 Ororo is hurt and Logan helps her with her rehab. Chap 2 is up please review
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own marvel. Nor Do I own the characters. A/N: After the current events in X-Treme X-Men storm has been left critically injured. Wolverine agreed to help her with her rehab and training.  
  
Most people would be asleep at this hour. She ain't most people. Most X-Men would relax and enjoy themselves when presented with the opportunity for some downtime. She ain't most X-Men. Most anybody sure wouldn't be pushin' their body's this hard months after sustaining a near fatal injury but their she is lifting weights.  
  
An absurd hour in the morning in New Orleans finds Ororo Munroe pushing herself past the pain of her recent injuries and to the breaking point. She feels immense pain with just the slightest of movements yet through gritted teeth she pushes herself harder then anyone would want her to. She understands that the only reason they are waiting around in Rogue's house in New Orleans is because of her. She knows that they don't expect her to be her old self anytime soon. She lives to defy expectation she tells herself as the familiar pain in her creeps back.  
  
She drops each weight to the side and clutches at her stomach. Refusing to let tears escape from her eyes she whimpers to herself in the dark solitude of the weight room. The pain frustrates her more than anything else does. She knows that she is better than the blinding ache in her side but it for the last several weeks has had the upper hand. She moans in agony as she rolls off the weight bench and onto the cold wood floor.  
  
Ororo rest her throbbing head against cool floor, a temporary relief from the pang of her injury. 'Perhaps Logan is right' she thinks to herself as the pain starts to subside and she begins to relax. "Maybe I should take it easy." She says to the morning air but her words, however, do not fall on deaf ears.  
  
"Maybe you should, darlin." Came a ruff voice from the shadows. It startled Ororo so much so that she tensed her muscles but came to immediately regret it. Her pain returned in all its fury, if only for a few agonizing seconds. She did not display her pain instead bore it all before relaxing again on the hardwood.  
  
"Hello Ro, should I even ask what your doing up at three in the morning?" Logan's voice came from the doorway but gradually came closer. He stopped in front of her, looked down at her limp body and began to pace around her. "What are you doin' to yerself Darlin'." Logan said; disappointment and concern in his voice. "I asked you to take it easy for a couple of days, I'm only here because you asked for my help. What good is my advice if you won't listen to me." He dropped to one knee just in front of her head. "Got anything to say."  
  
"Move." Her voice sounded strong despite her physical appearance.  
  
Logan sighed and returned to his feet. He held out one arm to his stubborn partner. "Let me help you up."  
  
"If it's all the same to you I'd rather just stay here on the ground." She smiled up at Logan not wanting to tell him she did not possess the strength to lift her arm. However it's hard to put one past Logan.  
  
"Take the hand, Ro." Sounding like more of an order than helpful advice. When he was met with no response he decided to push his luck. "Twenty bucks says you can't gather the strength to take my hand, let alone stand up."  
  
And with that and no more than an inaudible grunt, Ororo Munroe picked herself right off the ground and walked right pass me and out that door without sayin' a word. 'Damn woman is gonna get herself killed.' Yep, definitely not most people. 


	2. Nothing to Prove

Disclaimer: None of the characters in my story belong to me. I am not making any profit for the distribution of this product.  
  
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Logan leaned against one of the taller trees outside of the X-Men's New Orleans residence and smoked a cigar. The wondered if Storm had anything to do with the nice weather, he thought to himself while looking up at the leaves in the morning sunlight. Facing the house he awaited for his friend Ororo to join him on a hiking trip. Not that it was his idea to go trudging the woods so soon after Ororo's injury, she had convinced him that she was feeling a lot better and wanted to get out of the house and exercise.  
  
Logan blew the fumes from his cigar out his nostrils angrily. He had been outside for the better part of five minutes waiting for her. He put his cigar out against the tree he was leaning on and threw into the near-by grass next to the dirt path leading to the house.  
  
"That's not too kind of you." Ororo appeared in the doorway looking down at Logan. She was dressed in her shorts and a long T-shirt that she borrowed from Bishop. "Why would you do a thing like that?" She said referring to the cigar. Ororo gingerly made her way down the stone steps without the help of her walking cane, her movements did not go unnoticed by Logan.  
  
"You sue you're up for this?" He asked stepping out the shade of the tree. "You don't exactly look tip-top." He eyed her over then turned his head to look down the dirt trail they'd be taking. "You don't have ta, Ro."  
  
"Nonsense." She dismissed his concern. "I'll be fine."  
  
"Give me a break, Ro. I don't like bein' handled." He threw his hands up. "You were hurtin' comin' down those stairs. You can hardly get from your bed to the kitchen on your own two feet without gettin' winded." He looked in her eyes to see if any of his words got through.  
  
She matched his stare sternly "I said I'll be fine." She shifted her eyes to the dirt path. "Lead the way."  
  
"Your call." He turned and started walking with Ororo close behind.  
  
The pain she felt in her side was by no means gone but could be ignored long enough if distracted. She focused on keeping her breathing normal as she struggled to keep pace with Logan. "So tell me, old friend, why are you helping me through this?"  
  
He glanced over his shoulder. "No reason." He said, slowing down to match her stride.  
  
"Surely you must have some motive?" She tried to keep her voice even as fatigue was setting in all ready. She pushed back the inevitable throbbing that came when she overexerted herself and pressed on.  
  
"Never heard of a good deed, darlin'?" He said chuckling. "Why can't I just wanna help out a friend." Inwardly he was getting worried about Ororo. He could smell her sweat, see in her body language how difficult it was becoming to keep pace. He reassured himself she would call for a break when she was ready.  
  
She shot a look behind her. She could still see the house in the distance, she hadn't even gone a half mile and she wanted to call it quits. She closed her eyes tightly and thought about asking Logan for a rest. "No." She accidentally said aloud.  
  
"What's that." Logan said, looking at the women next to him. She was breathing rather erratic now and her dry throat began to make her cough. He came to a stop in front of her and she stumbled into him. "Ro, you wanna stop now?" He said half pleading for her to give up. "Come on Ororo this is crazy, ya don't got to do this to yerself." She didn't try to pull out of his embrace when he wrapped his arms around her. "We're turnin' around, Ro."  
  
"No." She got out between breaths  
  
"You don't gotta choice anymore." She tried to push out of his grasp. Instead he tripped her and pushed her into the grass next to the road. I'm sick of watcin' you tryin' to kill yourself over little things." She just grimaced from hitting the ground so hard and didn't attempt to resume fighting him. "You don't have to win every war Ororo. Not by yourself" He sat down in the grass next to her and picked up her hand. "Ya need to learn to relax, I know that's hard medicine comin' from me but you've always had a level head. You got nothin' to prove, Ro." He looked into the sky. "Not to me anyway."  
  
They sat there like that for a minute or two staring at the morning sky until Ororo broke the silence. "I am sorry." She turned her head to avoid Logan's eyes. "Forgive me for being so stubborn this past week. I don't like not being in control." She pulled herself, with some difficulty, into a sitting position and looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry." She let a tear roll down her cheek.  
  
"S'all right, Ro" Logan said getting to his feet and reaching a hand down to help her up. Logan looked back at the house in the distance before turning to Ororo. "Whenever you're ready."  
  
She dried her eyes with the back of her hand and smiled. "You're carrying me back home." Before he could say something she jumped on his back and wrapped her legs around his waist and pointed homeward. "Now march... please." She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck.  
  
Logan sighed and headed back to the house with his cargo. When they arrived on the lawn he playfully shook her off of him. "I'm sure you can take it from here, old friend." He headed inside the house leaving Ororo outside.  
  
Her smile faded as she sighed and took in the fresh air. She walked over to wear Logan had thrown the remains of his cigar and picked it up. She gathered her strength and formed a thunder storm overhead. She smirked as she tossed the offensive figure in the air and watched as a flash of lightning came from the heavens and incinerated it. She breathed out as the sky returned back to normal and all traces of a storm were gone. "Yeah, I can take it from here." 


End file.
